


Perplexity: Rewrite

by CLynnB



Series: Reincarnation is a Tricky Business [2]
Category: Power Rangers Ninja Storm
Genre: Gen, Hunter and Cam are stupid for a while, I lied, I'm literally just rewriting the original story, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, It happens, Rewrite, Secrets, There is no schedule, Very poor updating schedule, Violence, Wolves
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-07
Updated: 2019-10-07
Packaged: 2020-11-27 03:54:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20941853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CLynnB/pseuds/CLynnB
Summary: Rewrite of previous story. Cam and Hunter knew each other long before they were Rangers. Reincarnation is a tricky thing, after all, and sometimes grudges last through the generations. Currently on Hiatus.





	1. Chapter 1

Hunter Bradley gave a small smile as he watched his younger adopted brother help a customer at the extreme sports store that they both worked at. He would be the first to admit that he was an overprotective bastard at times, but there was no way he was letting Blake leave him. He'd lost far too much in his life already, and he just wasn't willing to take chances with what he had left.

Of course, considering both brothers were ninjas, as well as being Power Rangers kind of made his job as an overprotective bastard a little more difficult.

"Yo! Blake!" Hunter called across the store, giving him an amused smirk. "Have a moment?" he asked. Blake shrugged and walked over, helping Hunter put up the display in the front window.

"Why'd you need help with that?" Blake asked in confusion, once they were done. The display hadn't been at all difficult to set up.

Hunter gave a rare grin, placing his brother in a head lock."I didn't," he replied, ruffling his brother's hair. Blake squirmed out of his grasp and glared evilly at the crimson ranger aiming a half-serious punch in his direction. Hunter only smirked in reply, shaking his head in amusement. Turning, he frowned when a women walked into the store, even if that wasn't necessarily an odd thing.

It wasn't exactly the fact that the lady had walked in; it was the fact that she hadn't opened the door to do so. She had walked through it. Her dress style was odd as well, almost looking as though it were from an ancient Japanese warrior. Whoever, or whatever, she was, she obviously wasn't normal, and no one else had even seemed to notice her. Hunter closed his eyes, rubbing at them with the heels of his hands.

"Hey…Hunter? Are you alright?" Blake asked, having glance over. Hunter opened his eyes, noticing that the lady was gone and that his brother was looking at him worriedly. He took a deep breath and forced a smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he muttered. "Just need a little more sleep I guess." For a moment Blake just continued to stare at him and then with a shrug, he turned away, heading for the counter. Hunter did, actually, need more sleep, as did all the Rangers. Lothor had been sending monsters out at night, and they were all suffering because of it. Blake let his worry slide for a moment, caught up in his work, although it was still there, in the back of his mind.

Hunter turned back to the display, startled to find his ghost-lady standing in front of him. She smiled at him, little more than a smirk and then her mouth was by his ear. "The wolves will die." It was little more than a breath of a whisper and Hunter took a step back, both confused and startled by the woman and her words. But suddenly the lady disappeared, a whisper of air accompanying her, and a sharp pain was ripping through Hunter's side, driving him to his knees with a cry.

Blake was at his side in an instant, hands on Hunter's shoulders as he worriedly look him over. "Hunter! What the heck is wrong with you?" the navy ranger demanded of his brother, his voice tinged with panic. He, when the times called for it, could be just as overprotective as his older brother.

Hunter looked up at him, giving him a tightlipped smile and ignoring the fact that the blood from his injured side, although unseen against his crimson shirt, was threatening to leak from beneath his hand."I'm fine…just an injury I got in a motocross accident…" The worried look didn't leave Blake's face. In fact, it was obvious that Blake didn't believe that lie. He may be the little brother, but he was a brother, and he knew when he was being lied to by Hunter. "Fine. Listen, I'll go and have Cam look at it, if that will make you happy. I have to talk to him anyway," he muttered. Blake sighed and nodded, helping Hunter to his feet and frowning darkly when his older brother stumbled.

"What's going on?" Kelly asked, having come out of the back room at the sound of Hunter's pain. "Are you alright Hunter?"

Hunter glanced at her over his shoulder and gave her the same tightlipped smile he had given his brother. "Yeah, I'm fine." The words, however, lacked conviction, and did nothing to comfort Blake and Kelly. Shane walked through the door and gave the four of them a curious glance, his greeting dying at the sight of Hunter's obvious pain. "Hey, I'm leaving now. If you need anything, just ask Shane to do it." And then Hunter was walking out the door, giving his brother a short look. Blake gave a frustrated sigh, but let him leave on his own.

For a moment, there was no sound, a complete silence filling the room, the tension practically palpable in the air. And then Shane muttered, "Hey…I don't work here…"

"Aren't you supposed to be at Storm Chargers?" Cam asked as Hunter entered the room, instinctively knowing who it was that had entered. Whether that was something about being a samurai or a Ranger, or maybe even something else, he didn't know, and frankly, he didn't really care. He turned from his computer and gave the crimson ranger a curious glance, noticing the way one hand covered his side, and the fact that he was leaning heavily against the wall, faint traces of pain on his face. "Are you okay?"

"Hey, Cam?" Hunter asked, his voice sounding oddly reflective. "When you see something that no one else can see, that's hallucinating, right?"

Cam paused, eyeing Hunter in concern. That wasn't a usual question for the Crimson Thunder Ranger to ask. In fact, it was downright strange. "Yes. Why?" Hunter just nodded to himself, seemingly lost in thought. "You've been hallucinating?" Cam asked.

"Maybe," Hunter answered, that odd tone still present in his voice, but now laced with pain. "But hallucinations usually don't hurt…" He let his bloodstained hand drop to his side, the injury showing beneath a torn and bloody shirt. Cam was on his feet and at the ranger's side almost instantaneously, his own face going completely slack with shocked worry. He honestly hadn't been expecting something like this. The samurai probed at the wound gently, and then caught Hunter's hands as the said Thunder Ranger swiped at him.

"That hurt," Hunter gasped, letting his head fall back against the wall with a faint thud. Cam kept his hold on his comrade's wrists, forcing them against Hunter's chest in an effort to keep them out of the way and from having Hunter try to hit him again. With his free hand, Cam quickly unbuttoned Hunter's crimson shirt to get it also out of the way, and frowned darkly at the revealed injury.

"Whatever this hallucination of yours stabbed you with, is still in you and I've really got to get it out." Hunter didn't comment, but Cam felt his breathing hitch as his fingers probed deeper into the injury. "Did it say anything to you?" Cam asked, trying to keep Hunter's mind off the pain, his fingers brushing metal. Hunter gave a short nod, his face twisting again. "Found it," the samurai murmured, grasping the metal between two fingers. Hunter gave a sharp moan, his eyes closing against the pain, more of his weight being supported by the wall.

"Okay…I know you two are friends and all…but this is taking friendship to a whole new level," Dustin's voice said from behind the two of them, sounding both amused and shocked at the same time.

"Shut up," Cam said without missing a beat and pulling the star shaped metal from the Crimson Ranger's side. "What'd it say?" Cam whispered to Hunter, glancing at him, his eyes tight with concern.

"The wolves will die," Hunter muttered before his knees buckled and he fell to the ground, doubling over with a groan as the impact caused pain to flare up from his side again.

Cam started, not having expected him to collapse just then, but it seemed that the pain plus the lack of sleep was causing havoc on Hunter's energy levels. "If you're just going to stand there then at least make yourself useful and hand me the first-aid kit." There was a confused pause and then Dustin did as he was told, obviously concerned for his fellow Ranger. The Yellow Earth Ranger crouched next to the two of them as Cam bound the wound and handed Hunter some pain killers, which he swallowed without the aid of any water.

Eyeing the bandages, Dustin tilted his head to one side. "Dude, what happened to you?" he asked, helping Hunter to his feet as Cam put the kit away.

"Nothing…just a bike accident," Hunter replied stoically. He looked pointedly at Cam who paused before nodding, giving a small sigh, but not debating the issue. Hunter rubbed wearily at his eyes, gingerly sitting down on the couch before giving in and lying himself down. He was asleep in minutes.

Dustin eyed him for a moment before turning to Cam."Dude, what did you give him?" he asked.

Cam smirked and sat down at his computer, absently checking the cameras."Some aspirin…and some sleeping pills…" Dustin said nothing, only shook his head slightly and left with a roll of his eyes. That was just like Cam… "Finally…some time to try and figure out what the heck he meant," Cam muttered to himself.

"What who meant?" Blake asked, giving his brother a curious look as he walked into the room.

Cam sighed, glancing at the younger Bradley and noticing the poorly hidden worry."Oh, nobody," he answered. Blake sat down on the couch, Hunter stretched out behind him. The navy ranger leaned back, resting his arm on his brother's shoulder, gazing down at his brother with a sigh. "He'll be fine," Cam reassured him, addressing the worried look on Blake's face. "It was just an injury from an old bike accident. Nothing to worry about."

Blake gave him a blank look, and then rolled his eyes. "Right. Bike accident." He returned his gaze to his brother, shaking his head. 'What aren't you telling me, bro?' he wondered. He would do anything for his brother, as he knew Hunter would do for him, and he hated it when Hunter kept things from him. Oh, he knew that Hunter had his secrets; he always had. Blake had been adopted by the Bradleys at the age of four, after his biological father had been arrested and sentenced to many years in prison for child abuse. Hunter had showed up two years later, at the age of nine, after having been taken away from a brother almost two decades older than him. The older Bradley had never actually talked about what had happened during those first nine years, and Blake didn't press him. But that didn't stop him from worrying.

Hunter wasn't one to share his feelings. He blocked everything, making sure to remain strong for Blake, until he would eventually just crumble. It didn't happen often, in fact, it hardly ever happened at all, but it had happened before. And Blake would do anything to never see it happen again. He didn't know what he would do if he lost Hunter. He gave another sigh, letting his eyes slide shut and pushing such thoughts from his mind.

"Whatcha lookin' for?" Tori asked as she too came into the room, giving Cam a curious look as he typed away at his computer.

The samurai gave a small sigh of his own, shaking his head. "I don't know… Something I guess…"

"You're always looking for something," she replied in good humor. She glanced at Blake, her lips tightening in concern. "You want to spar?" she asked, hoping to distract him from his brother's condition, which she had overhead about. Blake gazed at her for a long moment before shrugging and getting to his feet. Cam watched as they left for the back rooms of Ops, shaking his head.

He, once again, turned back to his computer, hoping to find something that would shed some light on Hunter's random attack. There had to be something about wolves right? Because why else would a so-called hallucination say that they—meaning the wolves—would all die? And why would it then attack Hunter? With a shuriken for that matter? He sighed, rubbing at his eyes. None of this was making any sense.

The next day the entire group of rangers met in front of Ninja Ops for their usual amount of training. Cam was there waiting for them, relaying the message that they were supposed to train against each other outside, using their elements when needed.

The Rangers gave nods of assent, but Shane gave Cam an odd look. "Dude, what's with that cut on your cheek?" he asked, motioning to the thin red line that traced Cam's cheek from temple to jaw.

Cam gave a shrug, his face not revealing anything. "Bad time with some kelzaks…" The others just nodded and shrugged, knowing exactly how that felt, and walked past him, but he held out his arm when Hunter neared him, stopping the crimson ranger from continuing.

"The wolves will die," Cam whispered, touching his cheek softly.

Hunter inhaled deeply, shaking his head in confusion and just a little fear. He knew he'd be in a lot more pain today if not for his ninja and Ranger healing abilities, and it was all because of the 'people' that had attacked him and Cam. "It doesn't make any sense," the Thunder Ranger muttered.

Cam nodded, dropping into a fighting stance and motioning for Hunter to do so the same. "It will eventually, I'm sure."

"That's what I'm afraid of…"


	2. Chapter 2

Life at Ninja Ops had gotten stranger in the week following the attacks on Cam and Hunter. There was a tension in the air, centering around both the Green and Crimson Rangers, and the other Rangers were instinctively staying clear. They didn't know what was going on, and had the feeling that Cam and Hunter were just as clueless, but it didn't stop the concern or the curiosity.

"Have you noticed how well…protective Hunter and Cam are of each other suddenly?" Shane quietly asked Tori, Dustin and Blake as they watched the two afore mentioned rangers hold a near-silent conversation. That observation was as true as it was obvious after having watched them for the past week. Cam and Hunter seemed to circle each other when fighting, the same way that Hunter and Blake did, although Cam—surprisingly—deferred to Hunter most of the time.

Blake gave a confused shrug. "Yeah," he muttered and then paused, obviously thinking something over. "But they also seem to get rather upset if one imposes on their…their territory, with lack of better words."

Dustin laughed. "Dude! I've seen Cam agitated to the point of growling! Like, that was something, and it was only because Hunter was too close to his computer!"

Blake rolled his eyes. "And Hunter gets upset if Cam comes too close to me, for crying out loud…" That was somewhat annoying, as Hunter seemed to have upped his overprotective tendencies in the past month. Blake was usually okay with that, but having his brother snap at Cam—and really, only Cam—for getting too close to him, was actually taking many steps back. There was another pause in which they noticed both Hunter and Cam glance in opposite directions, frowns marring their faces.

"Well, there's something going on between those two, and I don't think they're going to let us in on the secret anytime soon…" His sentence died off as the other two rangers came to join them.

The group of six was at the beach, in a small alcove that was almost always free of people, and often used for their training. They hadn't come to train, however, but to relax. With all the commotion that Lothor was causing, they hadn't had time to just sit back and relax in a long while. Sensei had thought it a good time to do so, going so far to even kick Cam out of the secret Ops. Unfortunately, Cam and Hunter hardly found relaxing something that they were doing.

The poachers—as they had become to call them—hadn't quit in their hunt of the two Rangers. For the past two week, both the Samurai and the Thunder Ranger had found themselves fighting, not only Lothor's monsters, but the poachers as well. It made for large amounts of exhaustion, and they were having a hard time hiding the evidence of that from their friends and comrades. The bags under their eyes and the overall paleness of their skin was telling, and they could see the worried looks that the others gave them at times. But they couldn't tell the others of their predicament…because the others couldn't see their enemies.

And the wolves…

It was all about the wolves. "The wolves will die." That was their only clue towards their enemies' motives. But it didn't make any sense and it was frustrating Hunter and Cam almost to the point where they wanted to bash their heads against the wall. They hardly noticed that their own behavior was changing, or the fact that the two of them could communicate with nothing more than a few words and some short growls. They were too busy worrying about the next fight to realize that they instinctively snapped at each other when agitated, or exerted their dominance in other ways—although Cam more often than not, allowed Hunter to take the lead there. They didn't notice, but they noticed how their friends kept eyeing them. And how the poachers were never far away either.

Even now, they were watching… Two small groups, watching from either side of the beach. It was unnerving, especially in the fact that they weren't attacking. The poachers floated around like ghosts, but were solid enough to kill. It made no sense physiologically, but the two Rangers would take what they could get when it came to the poachers.

The others had all started up another conversation, including the two usually sarcastic/silent boys to the best of their abilities. However, Hunter and Cam were, as usual, not being very cooperative on that front.

Cam frowned and looked over his shoulder in the middle of answering a question, shaking his head as he gave a little sigh. Turning back to the others, he completely disregarded the preceding question to ask his own. "Did you see something?" he asked Shane, who shook his head in confusion. Cam sighed again, exchanging a look with Hunter. "Well I did… I'm going to go and check it out…"

"Come on, Cam, we're here to relax, not worry about what Lothor's up to," Tori complained from her seated position on the sand.

Cam turned to face her as he continued towards the trees at the edge of the beach, walking backwards for a few paces. "Lothor has attacked every day for the past week. Except today…tell me that isn't something to worry about," he retorted. There were pauses and then shrugs and Cam left the group.

"I'm confused…" Dustin said after a moment.

Hunter raised an eyebrow in mocking humor."And that's new?" he asked, good-humoredly.

The Yellow Ranger turned and gave him a half-hearted glare. "It's just that…Cam didn't seem like he was too worried about Lothor… It's more like there's something else bothering him," he said.

Tori raised her eyebrows, looking at the biker in surprise as she flipped some of her blond hair over her shoulder."And the airhead figured this out on his own? Wow…" Dustin decided to ignore this comment, noticing that Hunter was frowning and looking in the direction Cam had gone, a look of concern on his face. "I think your right," Tori said after a moment's hesitation, giving Dustin a smile to take away the mocking bite of her earlier words. "And I think Hunter here can tell us what the heck is going on."

"Ah," Hunter said, returning his attention to the group and raising one finger. "It seems you are wrong there…" He paused, eyes shifting to the side. "I have no idea…"

"You realize I can tell when you are lying?" Blake asked, giving his older brother a bland look.

Hunter gave a guilty grin. "Yup…but hey, a promise is a promise, and I can't tell any of you a thing." He really did feel guilty about that, but until he and Cam figured out what was going on, they had agreed not to speak to the other Rangers, or even Sensei, about it.

There was no comment before Blake decided to speak."But, bro, you are going to tell us eventually, right?" he asked. He was frowning, an almost desperate look in his brown eyes. He hated when Hunter refused to confide in him.

Hunter frowned as well, glancing over to the trees again. "Yeah…as soon as we figure this out for ourselves…" he muttered, placing a comforting hand on his brother's head. Blake frowned, both at the answer and at the action, along with the others. "Are you sure you can't see anything?" Hunter quietly asked Shane, who was standing next to him.

Shane gave him a funny look, shaking his head."There's nothing there," he replied. But there was. A poacher had just materialized out of the trees, smiling cockily.

Hunter shook his head, removing his hand from Blake's hair, and biting at his bottom lip. "I'm going to go and see if Cam needs any help," he murmured before running off. The others all watched him disappear into the trees with various shocked expressions.

"Well…" Tori said quietly. "At least we he confirmed that something is indeed going on…"

"Yeah, but what?" Blake asked, a small amount of bite in his tone. Nobody answered, but he really hadn't been expecting an answer anyway.

Hunter passed through the woods quickly, not streaking, but just running, absently noticing that he had more stamina than he had before. And that was impressive considering he was both a ninja and a Ranger. He passed a few poachers, taking out those that attacked him, but leaving the others alone, and then continued his search for his comrade.

He found Cam pinned beneath a rather large poacher, who had his hands around the samurai's neck. Cam was struggling weakly, his own hands struggling with those that were cutting off his arm supply. He was beginning to turn blue, which Hunter gave a deep growl at seeing. Simply put, Cam was being strangled, and it was obvious that he wouldn't be able to take much more.

Hunter slammed into the poacher, knocking him aside, and Cam, now free, rolled onto his side gasping for much needed air. The poacher grinned at Hunter who had taken a rather protective stance in front of the green ranger.

Giving a menacing laugh, the poacher gave a short bow. "Until next time wolf," the ghost-like person said and then he vanished.

Hunter immediately turned around and knelt next to Cam who was still struggling to breath. Helping him into a seated position he stroked the samurai's throat, eliciting a soft moan from his comrade.

"Shh…relax and take deep breaths. Come on Cam, breathe," he instructed, looking Cam over again, frowning until the hint of blue receded from the man's lips. The samurai shouldn't have fallen so easily, and then he saw what had made him fall. There was a long, deep cut running the length of his calf, most likely inflicted by one of the poachers' swords. It was still bleeding, but not as heavily as it had apparently been. However, the sight of the wound worried Hunter anyway and he grimaced. "That doesn't look good," he muttered, noticing that Cam's breathing had steadied.

"Why are we the only ones that see them?" Cam whispered, sounding just a touch desperate. Hunter shrugged sadly, placing a finger under Cam's chin and turning his head to one side to see the ugly, dark ring of bruises that was forming around his throat.

Gently stroking one of the bruises, Hunter pulled back when Cam flinched. "Apparently we're the wolves their talking about…If I got the meaning right," he muttered in return. Cam closed his eyes, leaning back against the tree behind him with a weary sigh. He didn't have the energy to think about this right now. Hunter turned his attention to the large wound on his leg, and he forced himself to stay still through the examination on the injury.

"It doesn't make any sense," he muttered, giving a wince when Hunter's fingers probed a more sensitive place on his calf. Hunter shrugged again, ripping his shirt in an attempt to make bandages. They seemed to work fairly well in stemming the remaining blood flow, although Cam had already lost more than enough.

"I don't think it's supposed to make sense," a feminine voice behind him said gently. Hunter spun around, a growl escaping his throat, and Cam suddenly perked up in full attention, but they were both surprised to see a lady with long blonde hair and a full white dress standing in front of them. She was almost glowing with the light emanating from her.

"Who…?" Hunter's question died on his lips as the lady smiled and he relaxed. For some reason he felt completely safe around her, and the look of pain had left Cam's face. He studied the woman for a long moment, noticing that she actually seemed rather familiar. As though he had seen her in a dream, long ago.

"I am Ohkami," she answered, her voice calm and pleasant. "The goddess of wolves." She looked around her at the woods, giving a slight frown that died as soon as she looked back at the two Rangers. "And you two are my children."

"What?" However safe as they felt, they were still rather confused. The lady—Ohkami—laughed, the sound like soft spring rain.

"Reincarnation is a fickle thing, my son," she replied lovingly. "One often forgets who he had been before. And it is the first time you have ever been reborn as humans. Why I do not know, but…" she paused, looking behind her. "Please, my time here grows short. Just know that the Ashnazi will do anything to kill you. Please be safe my sons. I cannot help you…" The light around her flickered and then she disappeared entirely.

Cam gave a groan and nearly fell against Hunter, who caught his arm and steadied him while still looking at the spot Ohkami had previously stood. "Do you suddenly…different?" Hunter asked in a hushed whisper. There was no real way of describing how he suddenly felt, except for 'different'. It was as though all his senses were suddenly on overdrive, and he had the almost uncontrollable urge to just _run_. Hunter had a feeling that as soon as everything caught up to him, he was going to end up with a killer headache. Cam gave a tense nod, feeling the same, and then promptly passed out.

Hunter looked down at him, surprised and more than a little concerned, and then looked up again to meet the gaze of a monster, this time one of Lothor's minions. He involuntarily winced, not wanting to have to deal with this on top of taking care of an injured and unconscious Cam. Standing up him pulled out his morpher.

"Thunder Storm, Ranger Form! Ha!"

"Did you feel that?" Dustin asked the others. They all nodded, looking towards the trees.

"It's been nearly fifteen minutes since Hunter ran off," Blake commented absently. There was another wave of energy…and it felt unmistakably like one of Lothor's minions.

"And that's our cue to go," Tori said, eyes widening in shock. They all morphed and streaked through the trees looking for both their comrades, and the monster. What they found was more than a little concerning, however.

The Crimson Thunder Ranger stood over Cam, who was sprawled unconscious on the ground. And though Hunter was faring quite well for not having moved at all, Cam was entirely too pale aside from the dark bruises on his neck and throat, and the blood-soaked strips of fabric wrapped around his calf. After a moment's hesitation, three of the Rangers jumped into the battle.

"What the heck happened to ya'll?" Shane asked, turning to Hunter before kneeling to check on Cam. Hunter didn't answer, only waved his staff in the direction of the monster, one calling itself Yoko and looking rather similar to a large beet. Shane gave it an odd look that went unnoticed through his visor, and then gave Hunter the same look, which the Crimson could feel even if he couldn't see.

"_That_ did _that_ to Cam?" There was a moment of hesitation and then Hunter shook his head. "And you can't tell me what did, can you?" Shane asked again, quieter this time as the other three took on the monster. There was another pause and Hunter nodded.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, feeling guilty about not revealing anything. Even though he had figured out some of what was going on, his instincts were rebelling against telling the rest of the Rangers, and he wasn't one to go against his instincts. Shane didn't say anything, only turned to kick a few kelzaks that had suddenly appeared out of the way.

It didn't take long for Yoko to be destroyed, and this time there was no scroll, and no giant monster, much to the relief of everyone. They carefully gathered Cam up, and streaked back to Ninja Ops, Hunter, still wallowing in guilt, a little behind the others.


	3. Chapter 3

Getting used to the fact that they weren't exactly human, was something that Hunter and Cam had never thought they would need to do. It was certainly not easy to do, in any sense. When Hunter had entered the med bay after that last battle, he had been completely surprised to find a large, black wolf instead of Cam, and had reacted in a completely unnatural way.

He had also turned into a wolf, however, he was somewhat larger than Cam, and was a tawny, tan color instead of black.

Seeing him, the Cam-wolf (because that's the only thing it could be) had given a sharp growl that had tapered off into a whine. And then he leapt. There was a scuffle, complete with clawing and biting, before Hunter managed to pin Cam to the ground.

Cam gave another whine, baring his throat, which Hunter gently took in his jaws, declaring his dominancy as Alpha. It had been a purely instinctual thing, as neither Cam nor Hunter would have acted as such in any other situation. There was a whispering in the back of both of their minds, as though another presence was speaking. It was faint, but neither had any doubts that it would get louder as time went on.

Hunter changed back first, figuring out how to do so, and Cam followed soon after, wincing at the pain in his leg. The scuffle had only exacerbated that problem. Hunter gave a groan, holding his head in his hands, and Cam realized that he too had a rather bad headache. Although, he also realized, he could see almost perfectly without his glasses, and he could easily smell and hear the other Rangers in the front room. It was disconcerting to say the least.

But they would have to learn, if they wanted to live. With a quick glance to each other, they nodded and Hunter left.

Cam was asleep, and Hunter had left, merely walking past them and up the stairs. The other Rangers were all milling around Ninja Ops in complete confusion, and a bit of worry in Blake's case. Shane was on the couch reading a magazine that he had already read at least twice, which could have explained his almost distant gaze. Blake was pacing, Dustin sat staring at the wall, and Tori was seated on the steps, chin in hand.

"Okay," Shane said at last, startling the others, and causing Dustin to jump almost a foot into the air. "We know for a fact that something is going on, Hunter even said that."

"But he also said that he wasn't allowed to tell us," Tori commented softly. She gave a sigh. "I don't think we should pry."

"Oh, come on Tor," Dustin moaned, waving a hand. "Aren't you just a little bit curious?"

"Of course she is, but if you know what's good for you, you'll stay out of other people's business," Cam said from the doorway, where he was leaning against the frame, arms crossed. He was somewhat amused by their curiosity, but also annoyed at their incessant need to pry. The others all jumped, turning to give him guilty grins. He ignored them, sitting down at his computer and scanning the surrounding areas.

"Hey," Tori said after a moment, her head tilting to one side as she studied the screen. "I didn't know there were wolves around here!" she exclaimed, pointing to the screen at a tawny wolf that was running through the trees.

Cam didn't say anything for a moment, just watching the wolf, and then he smiled. He envied Hunter's ability to run, as he wouldn't be able to until his leg completely healed. Ranger and ninja healing power or not, it would still take at least four more hours. "Two of them for sure," he replied, his tone different from what the others were used to. They couldn't place the emotion, however. "This one's the only one I've ever seen…and he's been around for a while." He paused for a moment, watching as the wolf disappeared from view only to reappear a few minutes later, running off a poacher, or rather an Ashnazi. "And, from what I've seen, he seems to hate kelzaks… I used to call him Hunter, before the Bradleys showed up."

"What do you call him now?" Blake asked, watching as the wolf seemingly looked straight at them. The navy ranger was caught off guard by the animal's bright blue eyes as it stared at them through the screen. Extremely familiar eyes, although he didn't let himself think on that. And then it turned and ran again.

"Um…" Cam muttered, giving a small frown. "Hunter I guess," he said with a grin. The others all shrugged and Cam stood up, stretching. He limped over to the couch, favoring his injured leg with a small wince.

"You said there were two but you've only seen one?" Tori asked.

Cam gave a nod, glancing in her direction."Yeah…there's another one…there's signs that it's been around…" They fell into a comfortable silence, realizing that they wouldn't get anything else from the samurai. Hunter suddenly appeared in the doorway and the others greeted him simultaneously. He plopped down on the couch next to Cam and inquired shortly about how his leg was doing.

"I'll be fine," Cam muttered, low enough that he could only be heard by those with exceptional hearing, namely Hunter. "But I can assure you the Ashnazi won't be."


	4. Chapter 4

He heard the door to their apartment open and close, and picked up the distinct scent of his brother, a mix of motor oil, electricity and cinnamon (although why Blake smelled like cinnamon, he didn't know). This time, however, there was no yelled greeting or the usual rustling in the kitchen, but a faint smell of fear that entered with him. Hunter frowned, wondering what was wrong, because Blake hardly ever got scared enough that it showed.

Going into the front room, he found Blake curled up on the couch, trembling lightly, and his concern grew tenfold. "Blake? What's wrong?" Blake said nothing, folding himself into a tighter ball and hiding his face. "Bro?"

He sat down on the couch next to his brother, placing a comforting hand on Blake's back and stroking his spine. Hunter continued his quiet ministrations until the trembling calmed and Blake unfolded himself somewhat. "You okay?"

"Mm." Blake gazed at Hunter for a long moment before getting up. "I'm going to bed."

"It's only seven," Hunter pointed out, still concerned and more than a little confused by Blake's strange behavior.

"Tired," Blake muttered, slipping away and hiding himself in his bedroom. Hunter stared at the closed door for a long time, and then he exhaled noisily. Of course, he had completely forgotten that Ed had been released from prison last week.

Ed Shulsky, Blake's biological father, had been sent to prison in Oklahoma on charges of child abuse, criminal neglect and a few other things. Although Blake had only been four at the time, he still remembered the man and remembered the pain. Just as Hunter remembered the time before he was a Bradley. However, Ed's release shouldn't have effected Blake in such a way unless the man was here in Blue Bay.

If that was the case, then Hunter was going to have to keep an eye on his little brother.

As it turned out, Blake did not sleep during the night, or at least he didn't sleep well. Hunter's enhanced hearing could pick up all the restless noises from Blake's room, but he left his brother alone. When he got up in the morning, he found Blake at the kitchen table, nursing a headache. "You okay?" he asked, keeping his voice soft.

"Cam and Sensei want us at Ops this morning," Blake murmured, not bothering to answer Hunter's question.

Hunter studied Blake's pale face, frowning. "You don't look very good, bro. Perhaps you should stay home today."

"I'm fine," Blake snapped, which only caused Hunter to be more concerned. Blake hardly ever got snippy with him. "Can we just go?" Blake asked, pushing himself to his feet.

Hunter caught his arm when he wavered, eyebrows raising as he felt the heat coming off his brother. "Bro, you're burning up!"

Blake sighed tiredly, leaning against Hunter and resting his head on the blonde's collarbone. "Sensei asked us to come to Ops. You need to go at least, and I don't want to stay here alone."

Hunter frowned darkly at that confession, but finally sighed. "Fine. Grab a blanket and let's go." It was until the truck was halfway to Ops that Hunter realized that Blake (who had fallen asleep) hadn't bothered to change out of his sweats, and wasn't wearing any shoes. He parked the truck in its usual spot and let his head rest against the steering wheel with a sigh. He got out and walked around to the other door, opening it and unbuckling his sleeping brother.

"Blake, I'm going to carry you to Ops, alright?"

"Not a baby," Blake mumbled, curling up into himself, shivering.

"No, you're not," Hunter agreed, gathering his brother up and not for the first time feeling grateful that he was so much smaller than him. "But you are sick and you aren't wearing any shoes, and I am not going to let you walk through the woods on your own."

Blake mumbled something rude, and Hunter gave a huff. He cradled his brother gently and streaked to Ops, shaking his head when he got there. Streaking with enhanced hearing probably wasn't his best idea. It would definitely take some getting used to. He gave a little sigh, realizing that Blake had fallen into a deeper sleep, and stepped inside, quietly walking down the stairs.

"Couch is free," Cam murmured as he met them at the bottom of the stairs. "Dad took the Winds into the back to talk to them about something." He frowned, watching as Hunter placed Blake on the couch. "What's wrong?"

"He won't say," Hunter muttered. Glancing up at Cam, who was watching the two brothers warily, he shrugged. "He came home practically terrified, hardly slept at all, and is now running a rather high fever." He gave a sigh, running a hand through his messy hair. "I think this has something to do with the fact that his biological father is out of prison and possibly here in Blue Bay Harbor."

Cam pursed his lips, placing a hand against Blake's forehead. The younger Ranger grumbled and moved away from the cold hand, burrowing deeper into his blanket, but not waking. Cam was a little confused by the fact that he was feeling entirely protective of the Navy Ranger, almost as though he were part of his family. And then it hit him; Blake was part of their pack. While Hunter had claimed the position of Alpha, and Cam had taken Beta, Blake was still part of the pack. Almost like a cub that the two were intent on protecting.

They looked up at the sound of the other Rangers approaching. "Hey guys!" Shane called, and then he frowned. "What's wrong with Blake?"

"He's sick," Hunter replied, getting to his feet. "Let him sleep." They all nodded, and headed for the back rooms for some more training. Both wolves could feel the eyes of the others on them, and knew that they were curious.

Cam and Hunter had refused to say anything on the subject of what was going on, and the other four had decided it best not to pry. However, even Sensei was beginning to get worried, and Cam and Hunter both knew that they wouldn't be able to keep it from them forever.

_So tell me,_ Cam said, telepathically as the two wolves had found they were able to do. That faint whispering from earlier had solidified into the thoughts of each other. It had been disconcerting at first, and completely invasive until the two had managed to figure out a way to block their minds and only give what they wanted to give. _Will Blake be okay?_

_How am I supposed to know?_ Hunter replied as he instinctively moved into a fighting stance. Cam gave him a bland look and then attacked him. Hunter blocked it, absently noticing that the others had started as well. _We've got to get him better, and then we can see about what's got him up in arms._ There was a pause as Hunter dodged another punch and then threw one of his own. _He'll be alright… We always are._ They fought for a few minutes more and then took a breather.

Cam stopped, placing his hands on his knees and breathing deeply. Hunter did so as well as the two of them turned to look at the other three and give helpful comments to help them improve.

The three Wind Rangers stopped after a moment, all pausing to catch their breath. They looked up at Cam and Hunter in confusion as the two wolves suddenly turned to look towards the front room simultaneously. With a slight nod of his head, Hunter turned and left the training room.

"Dude," Dustin moaned, "I know you don't want us to pry, but you're really beginning to creep me out…" Cam just sighed and gave him a sidelong look.

"He's got a point, Cam," Tori commented. "Don't we have a right to know what's going on?"

"Eventually," Cam replied, his eyes suddenly gaining a new look to them. A somewhat feral look that started the Winds, as they had never seen it before. "In due time you will understand everything. But not until then." And with that, he launched into a new attack on Shane, who blocked just in time.

"Blake?" Hunter asked as he entered the front room. Blake didn't respond from where he was seated on the ground in front of the couch, his head resting against his knees. The blanket was pooled around his waist, where it had fallen, and the feverish teen was shivering. Hunter sat down next to him. "Come on bro, talk to me."

"I saw Ed yesterday," Blake muttered. Hunter blinked, not quite expecting his brother to say that. However, he didn't say anything, allowing the Navy Ranger to continue. "He's not too happy with me. Says it's my fault he went to jail in the first place… And he says he's going to get his revenge." Blake snorted softly. "Sounded just like one of those insane movie villains. You know the ones? All manic laughter and stupid plans?" He gave a shudder, eyes dropping to the floor. There was a long pause of silence in which Hunter wrapped his arms around Blake.

The Navy Ranger fell into the strong embrace, resting against his brother's chest, and Hunter was disappointed to find that his fever hadn't gone down at all. "You know," Hunter said after a moment. "I would do anything to make sure that creep never touches you."

"I know," Blake murmured tiredly, allowing Hunter to comfort him. He felt awful, and had always hated being sick. He could remember his parents (adoptive, not biological) holding him when he got sick. And later, when they were gone, Hunter doing the same. He'd always been there for him, and it was no different now that they were Rangers.

Two days later:

He'd had to get out of the apartment. Being sick and cooped up had been horrible, but his fever had broken last night and he felt a lot better now. Blake sighed as he sat on the bench in the park. It was getting dark out but that didn't bother him. In fact, the sunset was actually rather spectacular.

"Blake," a voice above him said suddenly, causing Blake to look up. He frowned at himself for allowing someone to sneak up on him. "How good to see you again," Ed said with a sarcastic smile. Blake stood, watching his biological father warily. "Where's your brother?"

Blake didn't say anything, he didn't back up, in fact he just stared at the man, an obvious dislike in his eyes. And then Ed's fist connected with his jaw, causing him to stumble backwards. Still, he didn't do anything.

"Not going to talk, eh?" Ed asked, his voice filled with malice. He hit the Ranger again. And then he jumped back with a startled cry.

A tawny wolf had just jumped in front of Blake, growling angrily, teeth bared. It was larger than most wolves, standing just past Blake's waist at shoulder level. And it did not look happy at all. Ed looked at it in confused fear and then he looked at Blake, who was just as surprised but didn't show it. "You have a new pet, I see," Ed growled. The wolf growled back, taking a step forward to match the one that Ed took back.

"He's not mine," Blake replied nonchalantly. He didn't bother to wonder about the strange behavior of the creature. In fact, he wasn't bothering to feel much of anything at that moment. "He's just a wild wolf that lives around here."

"Right," Ed muttered, backing up. And then another wolf was slowly walking out of the trees to the right. A jet black wolf who was also growling, although not as fiercely. Blake looked at it and then back at the man that was noted as his father, who suddenly turned on his heel and took off running.

The two wolves turned towards the surprised Navy Ranger and just looked at him before they, too, took off running into the trees. Blake sighed, touching his bruised jaw gingerly as he watched them run off. That had been rather odd, but he wasn't complaining.

He arrived at Ninja Ops about half-an-hour after his run in with the canines and slowly walked down the stairs. Cam, Hunter and Shane were down in the main room, watching as Cam typed something on his computer. Tori and Dustin were probably in one of the further back rooms.

Hunter looked up as his brother walked into the room and frowned, walking over to him. He placed one finger under his chin, turning Blake's face to get a better look at his bruised jaw. And then he sighed giving Blake a long look but not saying anything. Blake pulled away and walked past him, heading for the computer.

"Hey Cam," he said, drawing the samurai's attention to him. "I met those wolves you were talking about."

Cam's eyes widened and he shot Blake a look."You did? They didn't hurt you did they?"

Blake shook his head, slightly amused."No…quite the opposite in fact…" He cocked his head to one side, looking at Cam curiously. "You said you've never seen the other one?" Cam nodded, turning back to the computer. "Well…he's jet black…with brownish-black eyes."

Hunter grinned at that. "Well, I say if Cam's allowed to name a wolf after me, then I'm allowed to name the other one after him!" he exclaimed, giving Cam an odd look.

"I don't know if I want a dog named after me," Cam muttered, glancing up at the amused Rangers.

"They're not dogs," Shane replied, raising his pointer finger. "They're wolves. There's a difference." Cam sighed, knowing he was defeated. But then again…why shouldn't the wolf be named after him? After all…he was the wolf.

Cam shook his head, looking back at Blake. "Just be careful around them. They are still wild animals." Even if Blake was a part of their pack.


	5. Chapter 5

There was a niggling in the back of his mind, and it was beginning to get on his nerves. Cam sighed, pushing away from his computer, stretching and trying to get a mental lock on his Alpha. He frowned when he couldn't pick anything up. Pressing a few keys, Cyber-Cam was activated, and Cam stood. "I'm going out for a while. Keep an eye on things here."

"Whatever you say, Creator Dude!"

Rolling his eyes, Cam left ops and started trekking through the woods. When he was certain he was free of the cameras, he shifted and began searching for Hunter's scent-trail. His Alpha had a very specific scent, Cam had found, mixed with the motor-oil that came with motocross. Hunter smelled of electricity, sand and saffron. It was an odd combination, but a comforting one, that spoke of power, strength and family.

Hunter had once said that Cam smelled of metal—steel, specifically—and water, which actually did have a scent, surprisingly. Ferocity and stability, the blond had said. The large black wolf shook his head at that, recalling it fondly.

He picked up the freshest trail, snarling when it mixed with the Ashnazi. Cam found himself at an outcropping by the beach, a series of caves lining the cliff wall. Placing his paws with care, he climbed down to one of the lower ones and entered.

_So that's where you ran off to?_ Cam muttered telepathically, coming into the cave to sit next to Hunter, who was sprawled out on the ground. The Bradley didn't move and the wolf cocked his head to one side in concern. He waited a good ten minutes before finally resorting to licking his wolf-brother's face.

Hunter awoke suddenly, pushing the black wolf away from him and scrubbing at his face. "You licked me," he grumbled.

Cam glanced back over his shoulder and gave a short wag of his tail. _Had to get you awake somehow,_ he replied. Hunter sat up, or at least he tried to, but he stopped halfway up, emitting a low growl of pain. Cam spun around, changing forms and kneeling next to Hunter. He frowned darkly, his hands running down the ranger's sides gently, stopping at his waist to help him into a better seated position.

"Tell me," he said softly, looking into the thunder ranger's blue eyes. "How exactly did you end up with three cracked ribs?"

Hunter raised an eyebrow, his face twisting into a pained grimace. "Do I even need to say?" he asked back.

It was a weary answer, and Cam gave a small sigh, shaking his head. "Ranger healing can only do so much, and you've been overworking yours as it is," he murmured.

"So have you," Hunter pointed out. "We don't have a choice if we don't want the others to catch on."

Cam raised an eyebrow. "Your ribs are going to take at least two days to heal this time, Hunter." The blond merely gave him a disgruntled look. With another sigh Cam sat back and then he glanced at Hunter's morpher as Cyber Cam came on.

"Hunter?"

Hunter raised his wrist to his mouth. "Yeah. It's me. And Cam's here too…what's up?"

"Dude. There's a monster out near the skate park that the others are having trouble with. Care to help?" Cyber Cam asked, sounding far too hyper to be delivering that news.

Hunter sighed. "Sure. Be right there." The connection with the clone broke and the thunder ranger looked up at Cam with a rather tired expression on his face. "Let's go."

"You're hurt," Cam retorted.

Hunter shrugged, standing stiffly and morphing. "Your point?" he asked back.

"You shouldn't go into that fight. Your ribs are about to snap."

Hunter gave a low growl and Cam backed down, lowering his head in instinctive submission. Hunter gave a nod and streaked off. Cam shook his head and followed silently, heaving a sigh.

"So where've you been?" Dustin asked as both Cam and Hunter joined him and Shane was thrown back by one of the monster's many legs. The Red Ranger gave a disgruntled sigh, regaining his feet, but neither of the two wolves answered Dustin's question.

"What's this one?" Cam asked instead, motioning to their latest foe.

Dustin sighed and looked at the monster. It looked like a giant spider on steroids with extremely long fangs as well. "It calls itself Arach…and it's becoming a pain."

"No kidding!" Tori exclaimed, picking herself up off the ground after being thrown. They couldn't seem to be able to get close to the creature without it tossing them back. "Can we just fight the evil monster?" They all shrugged and ran back into the fight.

However, it wasn't long until one of Arach's many legs hit Hunter in the chest, slamming him into the ground and causing him to demorph with a loud cry. Cam was instantly standing above him, Blake a few feet away.

"Make that three broken ribs, Cam," Hunter gasped, his face contorted in pain as he curled into himself. Blake glanced back at his brother, worry written all over his concealed face. A single hit like that shouldn't have taken the Crimson Ranger out so easily. No…something else was up and he really wanted to know what it was. Even more than that, he really wanted Hunter to stop lying to him.

Dustin watched the three of them, the Green, Crimson and Navy Rangers, and he realized that even though Cam and Hunter weren't related, they treated each other the same way Hunter and Blake did. As brothers. It was the sort of epiphany that he didn't have time for, though, so he ignored it for the time being.

And he turned and helped Shane and Tori finish off the monster, deciding he would contemplate on that matter at a less dangerous time. When the three of them turned back, the monster effectively destroyed, Hunter was gone and Cam and Blake had already demorphed. "We sent him home," Cam explained before they could ask about the Crimson Ranger's disappearance. "I'm going to go and check out his injuries. Stay for a few minutes and make sure nothing else happens," he said before running off.

Both Blake and Dustin watched as the samurai ran into the woods and then they turned towards the empty skate park. Everyone had disappeared as soon as they monster had arrived. There was nothing there now, as Lothor hadn't sent out a Scroll of Empowerment. No reason to stay or call upon the Zords. Shane and Tori both sighed, glancing at the Yellow and Navy Rangers.

"What is going on with those two?" Shane asked, glancing at Blake as he did so. The younger Thunder merely shrugged, frowning darkly as he thought about his brother. "Blake?"

"He's not talking," Blake muttered with a sigh. "He hasn't told me anything, and that's…not like him."

Tori raised an eyebrow. "Hunter doesn't say much to anyone, Blake."

"Yeah, but he's my brother," Blake nearly snapped. "We don't keep secrets. Not usually."

Shane shook his head, glancing at Dustin, who seemed to be deep in thought, and then towards Ops. "Let's get back to Ops and we can question the two of them to our hearts content."

_Hunter?_ The jet black wolf walked slowly towards his blonde brother lying across the path, his head resting between his paws. Two long incisions cut down his back, bleeding heavily and matting the fur. Cam stopped, nudging Hunter gently, worried about his Alpha.

One blue eye opened wearily and looked up at him. _They're still back there,_ he said softly, his mind-voice but a gentle whisper.

Cam gave a short nod, looking back into the trees. He could sense the Ashnazi there, and knew that he would be able to take them. Hunter, on a good day, would have been able to as well, easier than he was able to, as Hunter was larger and stronger than Cam was as a wolf. Unfortunately, this wasn't a good day for the crimson ranger turned wolf._Good._ He replied, his own mind-voice a growl. _They're going to regret harming my family. Stay there and don't leave without me._ And with that, Cam ran off into the trees.

Hunter sighed, lying his head back down and closing his eyes. He didn't like leaving Cam to fight by himself, but he didn't have much of a choice. It hurt to do so much as breath. And then his ears perked up and his eyes opened at the sound of voices coming up the path. The other rangers were coming back and he didn't have the strength to get out of the way.

They stopped short, their conversation dying at the sight of the injured wolf. Hunter slowly raised himself up onto his feet, panting as he did so, obviously pained. Blake was staring at him, and he could see the concern in his eyes. And Dustin…

Dustin looked as though he had just figured something out. And he had. The fact that the wolves were always around when Cam and Hunter were not. They way the two had named the canines after each other. How they tended to act around each other now. He was nowhere near the air-headed idiot he often portrayed, and he could see how all of this made sense.

Shapeshifting werewolf-esque origin stories, or whatever. Stranger things had happened in Blue Bay Harbor, after all. Heck, stranger things had been happening all throughout California for years, starting in Angel Grove so long ago. Dustin was open-minded enough that he could take the facts presented to him and accurately deduce exactly what was going on, no matter how illogical it seemed.

And Hunter could see that Dustin suddenly knew, could smell it on the Wind Ninja, which, admittedly was a little odd. He knew Dustin was smart, but he hadn't expected _him_ to figure out their secret. The one that the others still couldn't figure out, that his own brother hadn't figured out. That Sensei Watanabe still hadn't figured out, despite being in a somewhat similar situation. The Yellow Ranger took a small step forward, the wolf taking one back. Their eyes met and locked.

_Don't tell the others._

A quiet whisper, a pained whisper, pushing its way through the thoughts racing through his head. Dustin just stared at the wolf. _Don't tell the others, Dustin. Not yet. Please._

But when? Hunter could see that question in the ranger's eyes. The other three rangers all remained silent, not knowing what to think about the injured wolf whose full concentration was on Dustin.

_They will know when the Ashnazi are gone. When they are dead._ Cam's voice penetrated Dustin's mind strongly as the black wolf walked slowly out of the trees. Dustin's attention, along with the other Rangers' and Hunter's, all turned to the new wolf, noticing his disheveled appearance. Blood matted the fur on his paws and muzzle, and there were a few small cuts on one of his front legs.

Dustin just watched Cam as he came and stood next to Hunter, nudging the tawny wolf's shoulder with his muzzle. The brown-black eyes remained on the yellow ranger though. When Hunter and I no longer have to fight for our lives… And then the two wolves ran off, into the woods, Cam running behind Hunter, urging the panting wolf onward.

"What was that all about?" Shane asked, placing a hand on Dustin's shoulder.

For a moment, the Ranger remained silent and then he shrugged. "I don't know." He wouldn't give away the secret until the other two were ready, although he was insanely curious as to how this was even possible.

"Go on inside," Cam said, looking around the Bradley's apartment with a frown. He had always known where the two had lived, although he hadn't necessarily approved of the old building and obviously less-than-satisfactory neighborhood. However, the Bradley brothers were nothing if not stubborn, and so long as the two were able to make the payments and were eating well, he wasn't about to step in and try to change anything. "I'm going to look around for a minute. Something doesn't seem right." Hunter nodded slowly, too tired to voice his opinion. Cam disappeared around the side of the building and Hunter opened the door, walking inside.

As soon as he entered the kitchen, however, something hard slammed into the side of his head and he fell to the ground in front of the window without so much as a moan. There was a small chuckle.

"Seems I hit him just a little too hard," Ed muttered, coming to stand above the unconscious Ranger. "But then, it looks like he's already been in his own fight."The man looked up, a manic smile on his face and little sanity left in his eye. He had never been the most sane person, but prison seemed to have completely destroyed any ounce of humanity left in him.

The front door opened and the man turned, grinning at a startled Blake, who stood in the kitchen doorway. Blake's eyes moved past his father to the prone form of his brother lying on the floor. And then he was kneeling at Hunter's side, having shoved past the man that had been standing in front of him.

"Is he dead?" Ed asked. "It would be a shame if he wasn't." Blake shot him a glare and then turned his attention back to his brother. "Always in the way," Ed continued, hardly aware of what he was saying. "Always around you. So protective. I hate people like him."

A gun was suddenly pointed at Blake, startling Blake, who had not been expecting that. "And you know," Ed said, as the Ranger just stared at him, eyes wide like a deer in headlights. "I just plain hate you." One shot was fired, and Blake hit the wall behind him with an anguished cry of pain. Ed smiled, his eyes shining insanely. Another shot was fired, just as the window above them shattered.

Cam was jerked backwards by the bullet biting into his foreleg, but he ignored it as his paws landed on the ground and he gained hit footing. And then he barreled into Ed, smashing him into the ground. There were a few minutes of struggle before the man went limp and Cam turned towards the two brothers.

Blake was watching him, his eyes glazed with intense pain, and then they slid shut as he relaxed, falling against Hunter limply. Cam turned back into a human, running forward and ignoring the deep throb in his arm. Glancing at the wound, he was happy to see it was just a graze, and therefore he could put his attention fully on the boys in front of him. Hunter's injuries were bad, but he was more concerned about Blake, as the bullet had hit his chest, and even with Ranger healing, the Thunder was going to have a hard time of it. There was no way they'd be able to take the two to the hospital, what with them being Rangers. And even if they weren't Rangers, the Bradley brothers didn't have the right documentation and would probably be put into foster care if they were found out. And everyone knew that you didn't separate the Bradleys.

He checked for pulses on the two Thunder Rangers, and, satisfied despite the weakness of them, sat back and called Cyber Cam.

"Yo! What's up?" the clone asked, hyper as always.

Cam opened his mouth but paused, silent as he heard sirens racing in the background. A neighbor had probably called the police at the sound of the gun."Teleport Hunter and Blake back to Ops!" he demanded breathlessly. He was running out of time.

"Why?" Cyber Cam asked.

"Now!" There was a pause and then Hunter and Blake both disappeared.

"What about you?" Cyber Cam asked, sounding somewhat confused.

Cam shook his head quickly, looking over his shoulder at the dead man lying on the ground, surrounded by bloody paw prints. "I'm fine." With that, he transformed back into a wolf and jumped out the window just as the front door was slammed opened and a bunch of cops ran in, guns drawn.


	6. Chapter 6

He came back to consciousness in pain. Nearly every part of him wanted to fall back into the darkness, away from the pain, but a little voice in his head reminded him of his little brother, and concern prompted him to wake up. Hunter moaned, his eyes fluttering open. "What happened?" he asked, his voice harsh and raspy as his gaze settled on Dustin.

The Yellow Ranger sighed, giving a shrug. "Cam had Cyber Cam, like, teleport both you and Blake here, dude."

"Blake…where is he?" Hunter asked as he sat up slowly, noticing his chest and back were heavily bandaged. He gave a gasp as pain raced up his chest, realizing that despite the Ranger healing, he still was not in good shape.

Dustin was silent for a long moment before replying, reaching out with one hand to help the Crimson Ranger steady himself. "With Tori, Shane and Sensei," he muttered. "He's been shot."

Hunter's eyes shot upwards, catching Dustin's in shock."Shot?"

"Yeah. Shot." Dustin rubbed at his face with the palms of his hands. "As in with a gun."

Hunter's face fell. "Ed," he whispered softly. It didn't take much to figure that one out.

The yellow ranger nodded, cocking his head to one side."Yes. Ed. The ex-con from Oklahoma. The one found mauled to death by some big dog in the middle of your apartment." He didn't seem to notice that he had ceased the air-head speak. Either that, or he didn't care.

Again, Hunter's eyes met Dustin's in shock."I didn't do that," he whispered, his brow furrowing. "Where's Cam?"

Dustin shook his head slightly."We don't know, man. I'll go out and look for him," he said, standing. "Dude, go to your brother," the Ranger muttered as he left. Hunter just sat there for a moment and then he forced himself to his feet. He grimaced in pain, steadying himself on the wall and noticing he was still wearing his jeans, and that they were streaked with blood. He didn't want to bother with that at this moment, however.

He walked slowly out of the room he was in and into the one occupied by Blake, conveniently next door. Everyone turned as they noticed him in the doorway, but he ignored them, his eyes falling on his younger brother, pale and unconscious on the bed. Blake was never that still, always full of energy and fidgeting. Meditation for the Navy Ranger had always been a pain, and Hunter could attest to that.

Hunter slowly walked towards the bed, crawling onto it and stroking his brother's cheek. There was no response from his little brother, and Hunter's breath caught in his throat. He couldn't stand seeing one of his pack, his family, in such a state. As Alpha he felt that he had failed in protecting the youngest of his pack.

"I'm sorry Blake," he whispered in a choked voice, burying his face in his brother's hair. "I'm so sorry." Shane turned and ushered both Tori and Sensei out of the room, muttering that it was time to leave the two Bradleys alone.

"Yo, Cam," Dustin said softly, as the black wolf turned its attention towards him. The Ranger sat down and Cam limped up to him. "Don't you think it's, like, time to go back to Ops yet?" he asked.

_I'm too tired to change back right now,_ Cam muttered, lying his head on his paws. _And it hurts too much…Can't concentrate._

Dustin frowned and then he finally noticed the blood seeping from an injury to Cam's foreleg."Dude, you've been shot," he said softly, grabbing Cam's leg.

Cam scrambled to his feet, growling lowly, head down and hackles raised. Dustin gave him an unimpressed look, reaching for the wounded leg again. _No kidding,_ Cam retorted, baring his fangs.

"Wolf or not, you really should get back to Hunter…" Dustin muttered as he checked the injury and noticed it was just a deep graze. Painful, but not bad enough that he had to worry too much about it. Ranger healing would take care of it. "He's a little…out of it at the moment." Cam didn't reply, his eyes closing as he lay back down. "And Blake has yet to wake up…" Cam sighed, covering his eyes with one of his paws.

_How'd you figure us out?_ Cam asked after a long moment. In all honesty, though, Cam wasn't terribly surprised that Dustin had figured it out. Of all the people going in and out of Ops during the day, there were only two aside from himself that he'd allow to touch his computer; Hunter and Dustin. Hunter he knew was smart enough to work it, because being in his Alpha's head allowed him to know that the Crimson Thunder was actually planning on majoring in computer science, if they ever managed to beat Lothor.

Dustin, as it turned out, was a closet genius. The boy was amazing with math and science, although his slight forgetful tendency and his air-headedness caused others to overlook that. He seemed to want it that way too, so Cam went along with it for his sake. If there was anyone who could figure out that Cam and Hunter were hiding this, it would be Dustin.

"You and Hunter were acting to canine," Dustin muttered a few minutes later. "And too much like brothers…like how Hunter and Blake act. And you were, like, always gone when the wolves were around. Just put two and two together, dude." Dustin sighed, getting to his feet and stretching. "What's the Ashnazi?"

_You mean, who's the Ashnazi._ Cam corrected, looking up and struggling to his feet. _They're the hunters of the Children of Ohkami… That would be Hunter and me… _He saw Dustin's confused look as the Ranger glanced at him, and sighed._ We don't understand it either. Apparently, Hunter and I are brothers, and we've been reincarnated quite a few times…but this is our first time as humans. And we can't remember anything from our past lives other than the fact that the Ashnazi want us dead and we have to stay alive._

"That's about as clear as mud," Dustin muttered, beginning to walk back to Ops. "Think the others will, like, care that I'm, like, bringing back a wild wolf?" He shrugged, obviously not caring if they cared or not. "Hunter and Blake need you there. And if you can't come as a human than a wolf will have to work. I'll come up with some lie or the other…" Cam shook out his fur in reply and loped after him.

They were at the entrance to Ops now, and Dustin went down the stairs first, noticing that Shane, Tori and Sensei were all in the front room, by Cam's computer. Hopefully, Cam's territorial sense wouldn't kick in right then, as it would definitely be a bad thing. "Mama!" he said playfully, "Look what followed me home! Can I keep him?" Cam limped down the stairs, looking at the two people and the guinea pig warily.

There was shock among all those in the room as they stared at Dustin and then at the wolf that was lowly growling at the people present. "Dustin…? That's a wolf…a wild wolf…" Tori muttered.

Dustin cocked his head to one side. Behind him, Cam snarled slightly, snapping his jaw and emphasizing the blue ranger's point. "I know," Dustin replied nonchalantly. "I, like, saw the other one out there too, but this one followed me back. Cam said that it's probably, like, worried about Hunter and Blake…considering the wolves seem to have taken a liking to them…" He paused for a minute and then looked up at them again, noticing that Shane, Tori and Sensei were all watching the wolf in concern as it limped to Blake's room.

"Dude! Speaking of Cam, he said he'd be back later," Dustin exclaimed as he opened the bedroom door for the wolf. But he didn't close it again, realizing that that would worry everyone else. They all remained silent, however, not sure what there was to say…

Hunter awoke as the door opened, looking up at Dustin who smiled at him, motioning to the wolf staring up at him from the edge of the bed. Hunter gave a short sigh and a small smile, letting his hand fall over the edge to rest on Cam's head. The wolf nudged it slightly, and then jumped on the bed, curling up next to his brothers.

Dustin shut the door slowly, turning around and grinning at the completely shocked faces of his comrades. "See, what'd I tell ya?"

"Dustin?" Shane asked. Sensei left the room, shaking his head and muttering about too many secrets. "What is going on?"

Dustin gave a long sigh, dropping onto the couch. "Don't quite know," he muttered, hating that he was lying to his best friends.

"You know something," Shane accused.

Dustin shrugged. "Dude. Everyone knows something."


	7. Chapter 7

_Aricudo had killed him. The human. He hadn't meant to, of course, but the fight had gotten out of hand, and now the prince of wolves had killed the prince of humans. And the ruler wasn't happy. No, Kaido had promised to avenge his son's death with the head of Aricudo._

_He couldn't allow that. He couldn't allow his brother to die because of a mistake he had made. And so he, Prince Alchmed, fought alongside Prince Aricudo. And as they fought, they watched their families killed. On both sides of the battle._

The black wolf whimpered where he lay in-between Hunter and Blake on the bed, caught in the throes of memories from years long past. Hunter tightened his grip on the wolf's fur, his face tight with the memories that plagued his dreams as well.

_Aricudo fell. Kaido had killed him. And in his fury, Alchmed took down the King of Humans, driving him to the ground and killing him. But in the process, he was severely injured…and it didn't take long for him to die as well._

_And because they had failed in protecting themselves…in surviving…they were born again. Only to fight again. Fight the Ashnazi, the followers of Kaido. And they had yet to prevail._

Cam jerked awake as his brother was killed once again. Beside him, Hunter also awoke with a moan. The black wolf looked at him, breathing heavily, but before either of them said anything, the door opened and Dustin stepped in.

"Dude," he muttered, looking at the two of them and seeing the anxious fear shining in their eyes. "Yo, Cam," he said after a moment. "The others are gone, but they'll be back soon. You might want to change back now."

Cam stared at him for a moment, and then jumped off the bed, careful not to jostle Blake, who had yet to regain consciousness. He limped into the front room and quickly changed back into a human, sitting on the ground and holding his injured arm.

Dustin came in and sat in front of him."Dude, ya'll look like you've seen a ghost…both of you," the Yellow Ranger said softly as he saw Hunter lean on the doorframe, rubbing at his face. Cam didn't answer him, but turned, frowning at Hunter who was glaring back at him.

"Why shouldn't I care?" the Green Ranger asked back, although vocally. Dustin sighed, and moved so that he was seated on the stair steps, watching as Cam got to his feet, his injured arm hanging limply at his side.

"Do you think I don't?" Hunter practically yelled. "Do you think I don't care that you're always getting hurt because of me?"

"And how do you think I feel about that!" Cam yelled, throwing up his arm in exasperation. "I do it because I care!"

"Why do you have to take everything so personally!" Hunter practically shouted. Dustin sighed, noticing Shane and Tori walking down the stairs. They stopped, staring at the display before them, their gazes moving down to the Yellow Ranger, who was watching in silence.

"What's going on?" Shane asked. Dustin shrugged slightly, moving over a little to allow Tori to sit beside him.

"Because I am sick and tired of some crazy guy trying to kill us!" Cam answered. Hunter grabbed the samurai by the forearms, slamming him into a wall and pinning him there, causing Cam to give a pained yelp as the injury on his arm broke open again.

"I never asked you to fight beside me," the Thunder Ranger growled soft enough for only Cam to hear. "Blake's hurt because I wasn't able to protect him. Everyone that died, died because of me. For that I deserve to die." Cam just stared at him, getting a major sense of deja vu.

_"They died because of me and for that I should die!" Aricudo growled at his brother, who was pinned beneath his paws. And then he was gone…not to be seen in that lifetime again…_

Cam jerked out Hunter's hold suddenly, spinning around and pinning Hunter to the wall with one arm across his chest, his other hand pinning Hunter's to the side. The thunder ranger gave a hiss of pain as his injured back and ribs were strained, but didn't comment as Cam leaned in closer.

"I will not allow you to die again," he whispered, his hand slipping on Hunter's wrist slightly, due to the blood running down his arm. "This time will be different. This time Kaido will die before we do. This time we will win." Cam's glare softened into a worried look as he gazed at Hunter with his dark eyes. "I will not lose my brother again, Aricudo," he murmured. Hunter just stared at him, shocked by the use of his former name. And then he pulled out of Cam's hold, heading towards Blake's bedroom in silence. Cam leaned against the wall, his hand moving to grasp his bloodied arm with a grimace.

"Dustin. Go make sure Hunter doesn't do anything stupid," he muttered, not bothering to look at the other three rangers in the room as he slid down the wall and sat on the ground. Leaning his back against the wall, he drew his knees up to his chest and rested his head in them with a sigh, completely ignoring Dustin as he left the room and the two other rangers as they entered.

The samurai didn't move as Shane wordlessly dropped to his knees in front of him, cleaning and binding his arm with the conveniently located first aid kit. Cam could feel the tension in the room, the unasked questions coming from both Tori and Shane. But he couldn't tell them. Not yet. Not without his brother's, his Alpha's, permission…

_Cam?_ Hunter's voice echoed through the samurai's mind. _Cam, I'm sorry…I…I'm so sorry. I don't know what to do…_

_Don't leave me,_ Cam replied, lifting his head from his knees and forcing himself to his feet. _Don't leave me to fight Kaido alone again. You should know by now that that never works…_

_So…what should we do?_ Hunter asked. Cam ignored the looks Tori and Shane were giving him as he made his way to the computer; he didn't even acknowledge the other two Rangers.

_We fight, of course,_ Cam answered. _But we fight together._ Hunter didn't reply for a moment, but when he did it was a promise to fight beside his brother, not to leave him alone again.

Dustin walked back into the room, but he didn't look at the others as he went up the stairs and left Ops. Cam proceeded in his updates on the Zords and after a moment, both Tori and Shane left to go into one of the practice rooms, having given up on questioning their friend.

Hunter sat on the bed, staring at the blankets, lost in thought. But a soft moan forced him from his reverie, his gaze moving to his brother. Gently, Hunter brought one hand to his brother's cheek, caressing it softly.

"Blake, can you hear me? Come on, open your eyes, bro," he murmured. Blake forced his eyes open and his gaze met his brother's. "Hello, baby brother," Hunter whispered.

Blake sat up and threw his arms around his brother's neck, startling Hunter. The navy ranger buried his face in the crook of Hunter's neck and bit back a sob. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he repeated. Hunter gently wrapped his arms around Blake and rocked him.

"Shh…it's okay," he consoled. "Everything's fine now." There was a slight pause. "Ed's dead. Everything's fine now."

But Blake wasn't calming down, and upon a short reflection, Hunter figured out why. Ignoring his own pain, he gently lifted his brother and streaked out of Ops. "Better?" he asked as soon as they settled just outside the portal.

Blake relaxed slightly, hissing in pain, although refusing to remove his face from Hunter's neck. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, Blake," Hunter replied softly. "It's you I'm worried about, bro."

_Why'd you go outside?_ Cam's voice echoed through his head, sounding both worried and confused.

Hunter shook his head slightly, being careful not to upset his brother. _Blake's claustrophobic. And he was having a panic attack._

_Oh. Okay. Just remember that the two of you are injured, so don't try to take on anything that may come up. Please?_

_…Fine._

"The wolf," Blake muttered tiredly, drawing Hunter's attention to him. "It was shot…"

_You never told me that you were shot, _Hunter said silently, his mental voice sounding annoyed.

_Just a graze. You and Blake were worse off. Still are,_ Cam replied.

"It's fine," Hunter reassured his little brother, leaning up against a tree. "It came by earlier."

Blake gave a hum, relaxing into sleep and Hunter sighed, letting his head fall back to rest against the tree. He was tired. Tired of fighting, and of worrying over his little brother and his…whatever Cam was. Pack. Yeah, pack. That was it.

Nearly twenty minutes later, Hunter looked up at the sound of footsteps coming from two different directions. He picked up the scent of dust, sweat, salt-water and the scent of wood smoke and identified them as Dustin, Tori and Shane respectively, although why Shane smelled of wood smoke he'd never know.

"You two okay?" Shane asked, nodding at Dustin as the Yellow Ranger stepped out of the trees.

Hunter glanced at them, giving his trademark half-grin, although it was more tired than usual. "Yeah. We'll be fine. We always are."

"You two aren't alone anymore, you know," Tori pointed out with a smile of her own.

Hunter blinked and then grinned sheepishly. "Right. I know."

"Just hard to remember sometimes?" Shane asked with his own smile.

Hunter shrugged lightly, glancing at his brother as Blake shifted. "Been on our own since our parents died. So, yeah, it's a little hard to remember."

"I thought Sensei Omino took you and Blake in," Cam said as he joined the other Rangers at the Reflection Pool.

Hunter was silent for a long moment, blue eyes staring off at nothing. "Sensei Omino taught us, and if we did well that day, he would feed us."

"Living on the streets builds character," Blake murmured through a yawn, glancing at the others before burrowing back into his brother. He, apparently, didn't really care about his image at that moment, as Tori was practically 'awing' at the cuteness.

"Especially for nine-year-olds," Hunter grumbled, frowning darkly.

"That's just wrong, dude," Dustin muttered. The other Rangers all nodded, frowning as well.

Hunter shrugged again, and Blake just yawned. "All in the past, bro. Nothing much we can do about it now."


End file.
